A patent for new lens designs, including wide-angle primes like a 9.5mm f/2.8 and 11.7mm f/2.8, have been filed by Canon. The optical systems are small and lightweight, and feature elements such as an ND filter.
What's intriguing is that the patent – which was filed back in 2023, but has only recently been made public – suggests that these lenses are meant for 1.4-inch sensors. But what is a 1.4-inch sensor?
It is a brand-new sensor type from Canon that's comparable in size to a Micro Four Thirds sensor, although not quite the same shape, featuring around a 1.95x crop factor (compared to MFT's 2x crop). The Canon PowerShot V1, for example, features this sensor.
The V1 is Canon's flagship in the PowerShot V line and is a video-first compact camera, with an 8.2-25.6mm zoom lens (equivalent to 16-50mm in full frame terms) tailored more to vloggers than photographers.
With this new patent, I can't help but wonder if Canon is gearing up to create a PowerShot V2 – or perhaps a compact camera that's more photography-focused, similar to the Ricoh GR III.
To highlight some parallels in this context: The Ricoh GR III features a fixed wide-angle lens, equivalent to a 28mm in old 35mm terms, and an APS-C sensor. In comparison, the APS-C sensor measures 23.5mm x 15.6mm, which is slightly bigger than the 1.4-inch sensor (measuring 18.4 x 12.3mm).
If that happens (keep in mind that not all patents come to life), a Canon compact camera with an equivalent focal length of 18.5mm (the 9.5mm design in the patent) or 22.8mm (the 11.7mm design), could shake up the market.
Now, let's take a look at Canon's optical prime system patents:
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Check out our Canon rumors hub for the latest speculation about what's coming next. For Canon's current line-up, check out our guides to the best Canon cameras and the best Canon wide-angle lenses.
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